


Phantom

by tetsuyah



Category: Kuroko no Basuke | Kuroko's Basketball
Genre: Anger, Crying, Death, Fighting, Multi, Sad, crash
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-20
Updated: 2015-05-20
Packaged: 2018-03-31 10:25:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,238
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3974626
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tetsuyah/pseuds/tetsuyah
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's been one year since the accident. Follow through the emotions and memories that Kagami and the Generation of Miracles share with their ill-fated friend.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Phantom

**Author's Note:**

> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z9lhRpfmilE if you really wanna get into the right mood for the fic, i suggest listening to Dry Tears from the Lovely Complex soundtrack

There was nothing peaceful about the way the wind gushed throughout the court. Kagami was standing before the ring where it all began. The ring in which his life was turned around. He was unable to move an inch from the spot he was planted in. It had been a year since that day, and over a year since the last time he stood in this spot. He replayed the scene in his head like it was permanently engraved there. It was before the game against Kaijo for the Winter Cup semi-finals. After finally finding shoes, he’d run across the road to make it before the lights changed, only to freeze completely at the sound of screeching tires, glass smashing, and no more footsteps behind him. He couldn’t bare to turn around, and once he did – he only wished that he’d never made the stupid mistake to run in the first place. He knew that his friend had next to no stamina, but yet, the fool ran across the road regardless of the consequences. He leant down, and picked up the basketball that was placed beside him, looking wearily toward the ring. Before the release of his shot, he could have sworn he saw the empty eyes watching him, crying. It wasn’t until the ball hit the ring and rebounded off the side that he even realised the tears streaming down his face. It pained him so much more than he could even comprehend. He fell to his knees, plunged his fist into the ground and screamed the boy’s name, letting out every last drop of his tears. 

***

Kise couldn’t help but forget the way that the boy used to affect the flow of the entire game. Nothing felt the same anymore, and basketball just had empty emotions thrown toward it now. It wasn’t like the old times, where he’d be excited to play the game so that he could work closely with his pal. He didn’t know what to do after the accident, and nothing killed him more than the feeling of being useless. It had been a year since he lost one of his best friends, and just under a year since he decided playing basketball had become dull. He considered quitting on multiple occasions, but he could never bring himself to do it. His eyes blurred with emotion whenever he considered it, because he swore by the hair on his head that he saw the boy crying each damn time the thought crossed his mind. He pushed off the thought, hoping it was just a hallucination, but he couldn’t. The boy had so much more of an impact on him than he was willing to admit. 

***

For someone who never showed emotion regarding a situation other than winning, the accident hit him hard. Not once did he even consider the possibility of losing his greatest pawn. Although the boy had been a bothersome, meddling, stubborn player, he was extraordinary. His style was so much more composed than Akashi was willing to admit. Never would he consider admitting that to the boys face, even if the accident hadn’t occurred a year ago. He already decided what he’s going to do with his time now. He was going to do everything in his power to ensure that the boy’s loss went unforgotten. Every game that he won would be for the boy. He could see his light almond shaped eyes following his every move on the field. He could see the sadness spread across the delicate features over the fact that he was unregretful for not speaking to his old teammates. What did the boy expect, though? Every damn time his teammates look at each other, they’d think of him – and what was supposed to happen then? Everyone would just start to get emotional, and the game would not progress. No. He was right. It was impossible to work together in a situation like this, and they were better off separate. He refused to cry. Not one single tear would be shed for he had never felt the emotion of sadness. Sadness and crying is a sign of loss, and losing is one thing he would never tolerate, regardless of the situation. 

***

He lost count of the amount of times he’d thrown something in complete and utter rage after the accident. Every muscle within his body hated him for the neglect he’d shown upon them, but he did not care. For as long as the boy had been gone, he’d given up on the game. He had no reason to play anymore. The only one that could beat him was himself – after all. Without the boy there to assist his stubborn teammates, there was no one that could defeat Aomine. Kagami was utterly useless now, as he’d given up on team play and focused on solo. He couldn’t blame him, though. There was no reason to continue the game without his petite pal. The one who opened his eyes all those times where he doubted himself. The one who pushed him into believing that one day, there would be an opponent worth his time. Little did his little friend know, that he was the opponent that Aomine needed. Without him there, it was meaningless. There was no point playing the damn game without the support of his friend: the person whom he’d watched grow from nothing to extraordinary – from a shadow, to a light. Whenever he’d decide to skip training, back when he was part of the team, he could almost feel the smaller boy smack him upside the head, almost as though he was being told to go back to training. He never listened, though. He just proceeded to spend time alone, ignoring the concerned calls of Satsuki and those from the team he once played with. 

***  
His snacks had become dull. He used to love pulling out a packet of potato chips, and a chocolate bar during his time outside of games, but now they just seemed like they lacked flavour. He never expected the accident to affect his snacks, and that made him mad. He knew he’d never be able to get along with the small boy, but he never wished for this to happen. It was like he was being taunted. Every time he felt hungry, he’d pull out his snack – and then he would see the boy in the distance, looking at him disapprovingly. The boy was like the finest of snacks. He was as simple as the vanilla milkshakes he once loved. So maybe that wasn’t the best of descriptions, but it did the job. For as long as he could remember, Murasakibara had always dealt with pain this way. He’d block it off, play it cool and eat some snacks, until he could handle it no more. That’s exactly what happened to him a month after the accident. All of a sudden, he felt the tears rushing down his face, and it wasn’t until they fell into his mouth that he even knew he was crying. Once the tears started, though, they didn’t stop. He leaned his head against a wall, and dropped all traces of snacks on the floor beneath him. He was too upset to eat, and that fact alone shocked him. 

***  
There was no lucky item on the day of the accident. He remembered his expression when he read the horoscope. It read ‘bad luck’, and at first, his expression remained blank, without a trace of change. It wasn’t until the accident occurred that he truly realised what bad luck had meant. He had only wished to have a different fortune for that one day. All the signs pointed to misfortune, but he wished they hadn’t. He’d lost track of how long it had been since the last time he’d made an accurate shot. The last he knew of it, was a few months post-accident. Looking at the calendar before him, it had reminded him of the anniversary. Today was the one-year. He forced himself to remember, to go and check his horoscope for the first time in a year, in hopes that maybe – just maybe, something was different. As he browsed over the crinkled sheets of paper, it came to his attention that there was nothing different today than there was that one-day. His horoscope said the same thing as it usually would, and his lucky item was none other than a toy car. Why these things happened, he’ll never understand. He could still feel the overwhelming presence of the smaller boy, but as per usual, he brushed it off. Never in a million years would he admit to Takao, or any of the other ‘miracles’ about this brief moment of weakness. Midorima was a man of pride, and a man of pride he would stay. Aside from when the accident first occurred and he’d shed more tears than any river he knew, this was something that he knew he’d never be able to face. 

***

All six of them stood and stared at each other for a solid minute before any of them could muster enough courage to speak even one word.  
“One-year.” Akashi was the one who broke the silence. They all stared toward the icy character, who even at this kind of event, showed no emotion. Heck, none of them did; aside from Kise who had been an emotional wreck since he’d spotted him all from the other side of the venue.  
“What would he say in a situation like this?” Akashi continued, looking up, as though searching for an answer. Kagami, who remained in his own world until this point, stared at the red haired man in disgust.  
“How could you even ask something like that?” Kagami spat.  
“If he were here, there wouldn’t be a situation like this!” He shouted, moving closer to the visibly smaller Akashi who remained planted in his spot.  
“If you’d kept a better eye out, it’s possible he would be.” Almost as though a trigger had been pulled, Kagami positioned his arm, and let it go in a strong force toward Akashi, only to have his fist stopped mid-air by Murasakibara.  
“You shouldn’t fight, Kaga-chin.” The purple haired giant added without any addition of tone.  
“Well then tell Akashi not to be such an insensitive bastard! It wasn’t my fault!” Kagami screamed, aggressively brushing off the touch of the larger man.  
“Perhaps if you’d taken better care of yourself and those around you, we wouldn’t be here.” Akashi’s eyes lit up with aggression, and stared accusationally at the taller man before him that looked as though he was going to explode.  
“I’ll fucking kill you, bastard!” Kagami fought against the sudden grasp Aomine had on him, holding him back from committing such a crime.  
“Perfectly fitting for a situation like this, right? I honestly feel as though you enjoy getting people killed, Taiga.” That was all that Kagami needed to hear to break free from Aomine’s hold, and release the attack he’d been holding back directly into the face of the Generation of Miracle’s captain. The force of the punch knocked Akashi onto the ground, causing his eyes to widen in disbelief as the larger man fell to the ground before him, tears flowing as rapidly as a waterfall.  
“It was my fault.” He struggled a whisper behind his tears.  
“It was all my fucking fault!” He screamed, firmly grasping the shirt of the red haired man before him.  
“Are you satisfied, bastard! It was my fault!” Around him, Kagami could feel the change in the atmosphere. All of the sudden, everyone had tears flowing from their eyes. They all screamed out his name like clockwork.  
“Kuroko!” Kagami screamed, dropping his hold on Akashi, and burying his face into the depths of his hands as they rested upon his knees.  
“K-kurokocchi!” Kise followed, as he too fell to the ground and clutched his body within his own embrace.  
“Tetsu…” Followed Aomine with a whisper, as he struggled to keep back his tears, finally allowing them to flow through him as he bowed his head.  
“Kuro-chin…” Murasakibara pouted as the warm, salty tears ran down his face once more. Reminding him of the emotion that he’d kept buried for so long.  
“Kuroko” Midorima spat between closed teeth as the tears he’d fought for so long pushed their way out.  
“Tetsuya…” Akashi whispered, granting access to the tears he didn’t even know he was capable of shedding. Before they could all become aware of it, they were mourning the loss of their friend together. They cried with each other, and healed off of the company of one another.

In the distance, the blue haired boy wiped the tears from his face, deciding that he’d observed enough over the past year. He could finally allow his soul to rest with the knowledge that his friends were able to properly mourn together. They were able to accept it within the company of each other. Their tears were a silent apology for all the grief that had been caused, and that was all Kuroko depended on to push him through the gates of the after life. With a forced gush of wind, Kuroko allowed himself to fade; giving his friends the time they needed to properly mourn his disappearance together. 

“Goodbye.” He whispered with a brief smile as he shed the final tear, as his presence became invisible for the final time.

**Author's Note:**

> I'm so sorry about this omg I had the idea and I couldn't let it go sjdfsdf i hope I accurately got everyone's reactions in there :(


End file.
